NSM -New Sector Movements : Turn it up (Virgin)

IG Culture has built a reputation as the don of broken beat, chiefly through his groundbreaking work as Son of Scientist and his debut album Download this under his New Sector Movements moniker. He is also one of the few from the broken beat family to be signed on a major label -the other being Mark De Clive-Lowe and that was for his Six degrees album years ago.

So when this sophomore album Turn it up dropped, there was initial consternation all 'round. New Sector Movements was now NSM and there was barely any hardcore broken beat in sight -it was infused with or replaced by a collection of edgy soul tracks, smooth and well-produced. There was only one question but many answers on the lips of appreciators : had IG gone mainstream, had his major label affiliation driven him to turn to tacky r'n'b commercialism? Or was this the natural evolution of an artist we only thought we knew? Was he selling out, cashing in or was his own value skyrocketing?

Don't say it kicks off the album with a linear repetitive beat and deliciously soulful vocals. It's simple but effective and bodes quite well for the rest of the album. Something follows in the same footsteps but is not as engaging, as it never fails to evolve from a basic line. This was only alright for an introductory opener -and why can't I help thinking that if Paula Abdul had been less plastic pop and had dabbled in neo soul and broken beat, she would have done a double speed version of this?

Big it up is straight up ragga 2step riddims with vocals by Cécile and this is frankly sub-par from IG. We would expect a broken beat innovator to showcase some innovative spirit even when branching out, but the beat on show here is strictly run-of-the-mill garden variety garage. Heat it up gets a little more off-centre, but yet again, it sticks to one central melody which needs a lift from vocals by Eska -a lift that never arrives.The first true broken beat tune is uhm... Broken and along with Trying times, it unfortunately suffers from the by now usual problem -too repetitive, not enough mindblowing rhythm switches and intricate beats.IG does better on Never gonna happen, where broken beat and garage influences clearly mix into a nice little funky down-scale melody. Pleasant, but still nothing truly satisfying...

Sho you right is therefore a true relief. A funky and edgy soul kick with a tight chord change on bass is beautifully flanked by vocals from Eska, who goes from villain to hero in the space of a song. It gets even better on another slow soul mover, the impeccable Soon come, where the use of a minimal background synth chord and Eska's wonderfully paced vocals combine to create a true gem, as good as anything IG has ever done.

Turn it up is a tale of three genres. A slow smooth mixture of rnb and soul. A more edgy and often unnervingly fragmented and uninspired garage-inspired flavor. And the underplayed broken beat excursion -which should have been the prominent factor on the album. Turn it up is therefore also a tale of two levels. When IG gets broken or slowly soulful, he is good. When the vocals are at their best they're good. Unfortunately, such conditions are the exception rather than the rule on this disappointing album. We can see the logic and the desirability of rounding production and adding a little more depth and soul to the New Sector Movements sound. But IG does not reach his potential because he too often forgets this sound that endeared him to us in the first place.

So sellout or groundbreaking innovation? The answer was neither. If this is the evolution of the IG sound, so be it. But we would like to have more of the old IG Culture back.

Review by Nicolai Hartvig

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